Greater Sand Plover

As I've said before, it is sometimes nice to go and see an interesting bird, even if it is Out Of Area. So this afternoon I drove up to Norfolk with Mike to Snettisham to see a moulting summer-plumaged Greater Sand Plover. ("I'm thinking of going for this sand plover, and you're going to drive!" - this is fair enough, since MJW has given me plenty of lifts in the past).

Presumably this is the sand plover sp. which was seen flying south at Spurn, East Yorkshire, yesterday.

Things didn't look very promising to start with, since a) it was bucketing down with rain on the way there, and b) when we got to the RSPB car-park, there were about four cars in it - where was everyone??!

Me: There aren't many people here, are there?
MJW: No.

After some staring out at the Wash for a while (tide miles away), and a text from Mark 'Wardy' Ward, we decided to go down to the 'beach car-park' (with Sophie from Holme Observatory), where we found a fair-sized crowd and the Greater Sand Plover. YOU BEAUTY!

The light was pretty bad and the bird a bit distant for digiscoping, especially on my magnification. It's sometimes hard to stop digiscoping and remind yourself you're there to enjoy the sight of a rare and beautiful bird. When you have the kit, it seems churlish not to try for some photos, but when they're this bad...

This is my 'best' record shot:

Greater Sand Plover, Charadrius leschenaultii

There are much better pics on Surfbirds at the moment (and better to come, I'm sure). There were plenty of birding luminaries and acquaintances there - Nigel Blake, Graham Catley, Paul Hackett, Lee Evans...

On the way back to the car, we said hello to Trevor, Jane and Dan Williams, Will Bowell and Bob Titman from PBC. It was just starting to rain again, but by the time we hit King's Lynn, it was sunny...

Euro 2004 conclusion
There weren't nearly enough decent mullets to be seen, especially after the groups, but Greece have just won the tournament, 1-0 against the hosts, Portugal!

Cristiano Ronaldo is sobbing into his shirt.

I think I may have just won the sweepstake at work (guess how many goals would be scored, including penalties). Considering how little I know about football, this would be some feat indeed. I will wait and see tomorrow. Not holding my breath.

On a slight downer, my telly's just blown up...

What's in my CD player: Guerilla - Super Furry Animals

Lunchtime at Bedford Purlieus

Got a lift out at lunchtime with Brian 'Natural Stone' Stone and Mike 'Weedon's World of Nature' Weedon to one of my favourite spots, Bedford Purlieus NNR. Finally, other people are seeing the light and what a fantastic place it is!

We were on the lookout for White-letter Hairstreak and White Admiral butterflies. We failed on the first count, but scored on the second, thanks to an excellent piece of spotting by Brian. The beautiful beast was up in a tree and was unphotographable, unfortunately. Still, it was a lifer for two of us and a ‘PBC tick’ for the other.


Speckled Woods were plentiful, though, and easily photographed.


This is a Soldier Beetle, Rhagonycha fulva, I think.



What's in my CD player: Aw Cmon - Lambchop

Blog fever hits Peterborough

Visit these blogs:

:: Toadsnatcher
:: Weedon’s World of Nature
:: The Natural Stone
:: Bogbumper

I seem to have accidentally started a trend among a few local digiscopers. Now, Steve, Mike and Brian all have blogs and are using them to display their digital photos. What have I done?

Seriously, Blogger is a really simple way to show off your pics, as long as you have somewhere to host them. But it looks like Blogger has thought of that, too, because for PC-users, there’s a program specially for it (don’t ask me how it works). I’m not exactly a HTML expert but even I can manage to get my photos to do what I want them to, and it’s much, much easier than trying to maintain a normal website.

If you're typing in Brian's web address, thenaturalstone.blogspot.com, be careful you don't accidentally end up at Natural Stone, which is all about "IRANIAN NATURAL STONTS" [sic].

Surprising Sweden...

Here's a feature written by my long-lost acquaintance, the wonderfully, incongruously-named Maria del Carmen Clegg: OUTDOORSmagic Features - Surprising Sweden....

WeedWorld

There is a new kid on the digiscoping website block. Yes, WeedWorld has arrived! Watch out for the digiscoping and macro adventures of the Hapless Boy Weedon.

Ringing

Pics from this morning's CES ringing session at Ferry Meadows.


Juvenile Great Spotted Woodpecker




Juvenile Kingfisher


Female Reed Bunting 'control' - originally ringed by someone else at another site - click here for details.

Somewhere around 120 birds were trapped this morning - Chris's 100th CES visit to FM - from about 4am to 12.30pm when we packed up. We had the first juvenile Reed, Sedge and Garden Warblers of the year, plus what seemed like the entire juv Great Tit population of Cambridgeshire.

The weather conditions were good to start with, since it was overcast and not too breezy. Unfortunately, the vegetation was dripping with rain from the previous day, and it got hotter and more windy as the morning went on. There was a lot of deep, squelchy mud underfoot - as usual - and the mosquitoes took a toll on us - as usual. No amount of insect repellent seems to make a difference.

I felt like I made huge progress today. Extracting birds from nets is really tricky and it requires patience, a bit of problem solving, dexterity and a cool head! Today I finally felt like I was getting there. I'm still very slow (Chris can do about ten birds in the time it takes me to do one), but now I feel like I've got the basic hang of it and from now on I'll be able to get faster. Something clicked today. Hurrah!

What's on my iTunes: Gold - Ryan Adams

RSPB Titchwell Marsh, Norfolk

With some time off work I decided it would be nice to go to RSPB Titchwell for some digiscoping. Everything's close there, isn't it? All the birds seem tame.


Highlight was this male Ruff which showed well close to the main path. That's a real ruffy Ruff. And if that's not a mullet, I don't know what is...


I made numerous attempts at photographing Avocets (which were plentiful), but in 90% of my shots, the birds had their heads underwater. Never mind.


A very showy Sedge Warbler perched by the entrance to one of the hides and sang right out in the open, until it was flushed. That's the only problem with Titchwell - it's very busy.


There wasn't a lot on the beach, except for a few Oystercatchers.


A couple of summer-plumaged Spotted Redshanks looked smart but were a little distant for me.

What's in my CD player: Being There - Wilco

Macro at Houghton Mill

Gastrophysa viridula?

Went on an insect-hunting expedition to Houghton Mill, near Huntingdon. By the time we got there, it was very overcast and looked likely to rain, which I thought would work against us. But in fact the opposite was true.

Our chief quarry was White-legged Damselfly, Platycnemis pennipes, an uncommon species not present in the PBC area. I know next to nothing about insects so it was a good job that Steve was there to tell me what was what.

Since I bought my second-hand Nikon Coolpix 995 last year, I've become much more interested in insects because the brilliant macro function enables me, an unskilled idiot, to take excellent photos (even if I do say so myself). So please excuse me if I go over the top with my pictures in this post, because I'm delighted with them!












Female (top three) and male Banded Demoiselle, Agrion splendens




Male White-legged Damselfly, Platycnemis pennipes. The white legs are dangled in flight to attract females.




Freshly-emerged ('teneral') Scarce Chaser, Libellula fulva




Male (top) and female Red-eyed Damselfly, Erythromma najas


Blue-tailed Damselfly, Ischnura elegans

What's in my CD player: Grand Slang - City Slang label compilation.

Futbol

Even I enjoyed last night's Holland v Czech Republic Euro 2004 game. I was rooting for our Czech friends throughout, but it did seem a bit harsh on Holland that they eventually lost. However, there was a total absence of mullets on either side, though several of the Czechs wore their hair in the 'lank, greasy-looking with bit of elastic tied round it' style, and there was mullet potential on a few more.

This picture of Sweden's Christian Wilhelmsson does not do his barnet justice:



What's in my CD player: The Diary Of Alicia Keys - Alicia Keys

Football mullets

It appears I wasn't the only one to notice Fernando Torres' amazing mullet on Saturday.

"Torres has an unbelievable peroxide blonde mullet - sort of American truck driver meets Limahl, but he can certainly play. Within 10 seconds he swivels sharply before firing a volley that's blocked." - The Guardian

Amongst the Spanish side, Fernando Morientes also has a tremendous mullet. Do they pay good money to have their hair cut like this?



Why does the mullet persist among football players? Dan's Mullet Haven may yield some clues.

What's in my CD player: Fuzzy Logic - Super Furry Animals

Euro 2004

I was alerted to a van Nistelrooy goal for Holland against Germany (now 1:1) by triumphant hoots coming from somewhere down the street. I don't usually pay much attention to football but sometimes you get sucked in.

Euro Mullet Watch
I have been scouring the Euro 2004 website for more mullet action, but it's been sadly lacking so far. I haven't even spotted any mullets on TV this evening - oh, hang on - there's one - Bastian Schweinsteiger - see those tell-tale curls creeping down his neck?



The ref is sporting a terrific, shaggy coiffure, but I am undecided as whether van Nistelrooy's wig counts as a mullet or not. Somehow he manages to get away with it. I think for it to be a mullet, you need fairly short 'sides'.

There is something nice about the European nations getting together to play football in the Portuguese park; it makes a nice contrast from the 60-year-old images of D-Day the other week. However, some idiotic Engerland fans cannot resist the temptation to smash some things up, be it at home or away...

bumblebee

Nene Washes walk

This evening I helped on an RSPB guided walk at Eldernell. It was good fun. There were 24 people keen to find out more about the birds and environment of the washes and I think they went home happy. Bob and Emily, who showed me the Slow-worm at Bedford Purlieus, were there.

We had good views of Barn Owl, Grey Heron, Swift, Swallow, Cormorant and Meadow Pipit and more distant views of Long-eared Owl and Marsh Harrier. We watched a Hobby hawking for dragonflies over the pit, which was nice. All these are taken for granted by most birdwatchers but it's great to look at them in a different, fresh way...

Euro Mullet Watch
I am desperately trying to find the owner of the fantastic Spanish mullet I saw on TV earlier. I think this is the man - Fernando Torres.

---

Jeff Tweedy: We are trying to break your heart
With A Ghost is Born, Wilco's alt.country origins are becoming an ever-more-distant memory. The band's leader, Jeff Tweedy, tells Kevin Harley what drives them on.

What's in my CD player: If You're Feeling Sinister - Belle & Sebastian

Breckland Nightjar evening

The Nightjar is one of Britain’s most intriguing birds. They have an air of exclusivity – you aren’t going to see them unless you go to special sites in peculiar habitats at certain times of year; they aren’t birds you can just bump into.

It was for these reasons that I hadn’t seen one until last year, at the advanced age of 23 – I simply hadn’t been anywhere where there were any. When I was younger, I listened to tape recordings of ‘churring’ and thought what a bizarre, un-bird-like sound it was; they remained one of those mythical birds which were really interesting but that I might never see.

So last year’s experience was pretty amazing. But nobody told me they were going to fly around my head at barely an arm’s distance!

A year on, it was time for a return visit with Steve Dudley, former Brecks resident and repository of local knowledge. The Brecks, on the Norfolk/Suffolk border, have some of the country’s largest Nightjar populations in the heathland/open pine forest. On the way, we stopped at Cavenham Heath and saw a family party of Wood Larks, a hunting Hobby, a pair of Little Owls and a Red Fox trotting around, watched by Rabbits.

Onto the main event. As we walked along the forestry track to the Nightjars' arena, numerous 'roding' Woodcock flew over (click here to hear what that sounds like). At about 21:30, we heard the first 'jar of the evening... a hollow, distant, whirring, rattling, rasping buzz, dipping and rising in pitch every few seconds...

Perhaps I don't have to labour too hard to describe it to you, because you can listen to an MP3 here!

Soon, we saw a bird floating against a backdrop of cloudy sky and dark pines... a male, with white wing flashes. Walking further along the track, a young Brown Hare lolloped along towards us next to a timber stack. We heard more churring, saw males flying around and into the forest, before another, much closer bird started up. It's only when you get really close to a Nightjar that you get the full impact of just how... strange the sound is. It doesn't sound like a bird at all, more like something mechanical.

Most of the churrers... churr for a minute or so, then just stop dead. It's when there's a female in the vicinity that things get really exciting. It's all about sex, of course. The churring goes on for a while as normal, before breaking down, coming to a clattering, squawking halt, with exuberant wing-clapping (and probable mating). That's pretty special to hear.

One of the ways to attract a male Nightjar's attention is to mimic his wing-clapping. We tried it, with immediate results... we watched as the male flew towards us, silhouetted against the darkening sky, calling, and flew in a small circle around our heads, having a good look before vanishing back the way he'd come.

The late birder gets the worms, too...

What's in my CD player: Noyoucmon - Lambchop

Mark Radcliffe

Got bored doing some work while it's too warm to get to sleep and somehow I ended up listening to Mark Radcliffe's new show on BBC Radio 2. I used to fall asleep listening to Mark and Lard when they did the Graveyard Shift (22:00-00:00) on Radio 1 in the mid 1990s.

Ah, happy days... They used to do what could loosely be described as 'comedy', in the form of Sh*t Agent, the Rabbi Lionel Blair, Fish or Fowl etc etc etc. In about 1997 they moved to the breakfast show because they got fed up of not being able to go out in the evenings, and the world of radio was all the poorer. I used to enjoy listening to poetry from the likes of Simon Armitage and Ian McMillan, and the show provided me with a supply of musical inspiration. I'm pleased to say that this new show seems to be taking some of the old one's elements, which can only be a good thing.

I've never listened to Radio 2 before...

Quail on Black Bush

Mike Weedon phoned at about 21:25 to say he was listening to two Quail singing from a wheat field on Black Bush Drove. By the time I got there, only one bird was singing. It didn't seem worth staying too long... after you've heard one Quail, you've heard them all, haven't you?

Black Tern duck broken

Word broke this morning that a Black Tern was at Welland Bank Pits! Couldn't resist the lure of another PBC tick, so I headed up there and there it was, number 191 on my list. After last weekend's disaster, it was a relief!

I enjoyed watching it hawk for insects for about an hour... it spent quite a lot of time flying high over the water, presumably where its prey was. The size and flight differences with Common Tern were interesting. I've seen a few Black Terns in Northants before but these were my best, most prolonged views.

A Hobby dashed around, grabbing insects and having a pop at young Starlings.

What's in my CD player: Mighty Joe Moon - Grant Lee Buffalo

Ringing

Despite the sunshine, today's CES (Constant Effort Site) visit to Ferry Meadows was much more productive than the previous two. A whopping total of 107 birds were processed between 05:00 and 12:30, with the two most numerous species being Blackbird and Blue Tit. Usually, Reed and Sedge Warblers are the most commonly trapped birds at FM, but Blackbirds and Blue Tits have probably just fledged their first broods whereas the warblers are still sitting on theirs.

Highlight were probably a smart juvenile Reed Bunting and a juvenile Mistle Thrush, which was a site ringing 'tick' for Chris. Though willow carr and alder/birch woodland isn't really typical habitat for Mistle Thrushes, the bird had probably been feeding on the nearby golf course with its family, and happened to drop into a net! A very striking bird indeed.




I continue to make slow (but steady) progress with ringing. I'm still getting the hang of extracting birds, which I don't find easy at the moment. Some extractions are fairly straightforward, but others are extremely complex! With the addition of deep mud underfoot, the attentions of mosquitos and sweaty, humid conditions, it all adds up to bloody hard work, though ultimately satisfying...

What's in my CD player: Being There - Wilco

Castor Hanglands insects

Got a phone call at lunchtime from MJW who was watching a male Broad-bodied Chaser (Libellula depressa) at Castor Hanglands. After a little thought I decided it would be nice to go and see it. What an insect!

There were also Hairy Dragonflies (Brachytron pratense) on one of the other ponds, and we nearly trod on this Glow-worm (Lampyris noctiluca) larva on the way out (see below). Robin Scagell of the UK Glow Worm Survey kindly confirmed its identity. There are no other recent records of Glow-worms from this area so it will be fascinating to visit again to look for glowing females. The survey's website provides lots of information if you're interested.

Bedford Purlieus NNR

Drove out to Bedford P's this morning. Departure (from home) slightly delayed because some ignorant motorist had blocked my car in! However, while I waited for them to move, a Hobby swooped past my window and added itself to the garden list. Magnificent!

Once I got there, my enthusiasm was slightly dampened, so I just pottered around. Not a lot of note. One area of the wood has been fenced off so deer can't graze/browse, and the contrast between that and the rest of the site is quite dramatic. Lots of Garden Warblers, Song Thrushes etc. singing where the rest is fairly quiet.

Again, the star birds of the visit were Long-tailed Tits (pic above). I watched a group of six juveniles perched in one small tree (presumably one brood exploring the immediate area around their nest). Long-tails are extremely endearing in any case, but the juvs take cuteness to another level. Is it the little pinky eye-rings, or the soft brown and white plumage, or their daft-inquisitive behaviour?

What's in my CD player: If You're Feeling Sinister - Belle & Sebastian